No. 1 seed Kentucky: 10 things to know

If coaching is the same thing as program-building -- which it is, really -- then nobody's better than John Calipari.

Calipari inherited Billy Gillispie's backwash -- a Kentucky program that was coming off an NIT bid and losing its only All-American, Jodie Meeks, to the NBA -- and produced a team that not only reached the NCAA Tournament ... but earned a No. 1 seed.

Most improbable coaching debut ever? I would say so.

Freshman DeMarcus Cousins holds the key to Kentucky's title hopes. (US Presswire)

Why they'll win it: Kentucky has the most talented twosome in college basketball in point guard John Wall and center DeMarcus Cousins. Come to think of it, Kentucky has the best trio in the country in Wall, Cousins and power forward Patrick Patterson. Add combo guard Eric Bledsoe, and we're talking about quartets.

Why they won't: Three of those players in the previous section are freshmen. Historically, freshman-dominated teams simply don't win the national title.

Players to watch: Wall is Dwyane Wade incarnate. Bledsoe isn't quite as good as Wall, but is even faster. Cousins is built like a freight train but moves like a leopard. And Patterson is the most polished player of the bunch.

Best off the bench: Sophomore Darnell Dodson would start for about 310 teams in college basketball. He's a 6-foot-7 wing who can shoot the hell out of it (37.2 percent on 3-pointers), but for Kentucky he gets just 14 minutes per game -- and averages 6.5 ppg. Imagine if he played 35 minutes.

Soaring/slumping: Up: Wall was the best player in the SEC this season, and then destroyed Alabama in the SEC tournament. Down: After averaging a double-double for points and rebounds, Cousins ended the regular season with two consecutive single-singles -- and then added a third in the SEC tourney opener. (But then rampaged to double-doubles in the semis and final.)

Notable stat: The Wildcats are shooting 34.9 percent on 3-pointers. When they're 10 or so percentage points above that, they're simply unbeatable. When they're 10 or so points below 34.9 ... they're in trouble.

Last time as a No. 1 seed: It was 2004, and it was ugly. Kentucky lost to UAB in the second round, in Columbus, Ohio, and the Kentucky fan base turned on Tubby Smith. As well they should have, I might add. Horrible loss.

Last time won a national championship: Better times for Tubby. In his first season at Kentucky -- with Rick Pitino's players -- he led the Wildcats to the 1998 national title. The Wildcats survived tough games in the region final (rallying past Duke 86-84) and the Final Four (beating Stanford 86-85 in OT) before cruising over Utah in the title game 78-69.

All-time starting five: G: Ralph Beard; G: Tony Delk; F: Jamal Mashburn; F: Kenny Walker; C: Dan Issel.

Final thought: Kentucky has the talent to win the national title. Nobody would dispute that. Nobody smart, anyway. But Cousins disappears at times, and if he goes down the drain, he's heavy enough to take this whole team with him. And that's what I'm guessing will happen. Not hoping it will happen. Just guessing.